


Home Is Where The Heart Feels Safe

by cameron_writes_nonsense



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Child Abuse, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Parental Bonding, dadvid
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-26 01:37:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12545892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cameron_writes_nonsense/pseuds/cameron_writes_nonsense
Summary: Max is having a bad day, which gets worse and worse when what's really under his hoodie is revealed.(un)Luckily there's a cheery Camp Counselor to help out.





	1. Chapter 1 - Max's Hoodie

**Author's Note:**

> This is Chapter One of Nine or Ten, which I'll post once they're all finished. If you like this enough to want Chapter Two sooner, comment or drop a kudos? I guess? And I'll post the Chapters as I finish them. I don't have a regular update schedule and I have a lot of coursework to do so no promises on when this will be finished but hey, enjoy!
> 
> TRIGGER WARNINGS FOR IMPLIED ABUSE AND SELF HARM (there will probably be more description later on in the story so please read with caution, I'd hate for anyone to be triggered by anything I wrote).

Max was having a bad day.

Of course, all days were pretty fucking awful at Camp Campbell, but this one was worse than usual. Firstly, it was like 100 degrees out and Gwen and David had spent a full hour trying to get him to take his hoodie off. Ha. Like that was happening.

Luckily, Nikki had remained firmly on his side for the whole of the argument, managing to distract them several times with multiple anarchist acts. Unluckily, Neil had tried to argue for him to take it off ("Dude, just tell them!" "Get fucked, Neil!") and eventually left, chewing his lower lip anxiously.

And now here they were, hiking through the woods, which were AT LEAST 300 degrees and Max was boiling. But he was definitely not getting dizzy.

He kicked at the ground. Shit, that just made it worse. Okay, so maybe he was getting dizzy. But it's fine, it's not like he's overheating or anything.

"Max!" Ow, fuck. His head throbbed painfully.

"Fuck you, Nikki."

"Language, Max!"

"Get fUCKED DAVID!" His head was spinning even more. He was too hot. Why was it so fucking hot? Everything went very very blurry and then very very black.

\---

Max felt hands on his stomach, pulling at something. What were they…?

Everything came crashing into focus.

"NO!" Max yelled as loudly as he could. "No, get off me!"

"Max, you can't keep wearing this hoodie!"

"Fuck… fuck you, David, yes I can!"

"Max, you're overheating!" David's stupid, worried face swam into view.

"No, 'm not…" Max's words slurred again and he scrunched his face up.

"Yes, you are, Max, you _have_ to take the hoodie off!"

"No!"

"Yes!" Max glared and wriggled backwards.

The following sequence of events caused by that small shuffle was rather complex.

Directly behind Max's left elbow was a small fragment of rock poking up from the ground. As Max scrambled backwards, the sleeve of his hoodie caught on this small fragment of rock. The sleeve rode up to his elbow. David gasped, Gwen let out a soft "oh, god", Nikki groaned, Neil winced and Max flinched, hurriedly pulling his sleeve back down.

The last thing he remembered before everything went dark was a pair of arms scooping him up from the ground.

\---

Neil paced. He'd always been a pacer.

"This is bad, Nikki, this is fucking bad!" He chewed on his bottom lip anxiously. "This is worse than the parents evening both my parents showed up to!"

"I don't get it," replied Nikki. "What's so bad? I mean, I know that they found out about Max's secret, but what are they gonna do?"

"They'll tell other people, Nikki! Then Max will get taken away, and he'll probably get killed by some shitty system that doesn't work properly!" Nikki narrowed her eyes, the gravity of the situation dawning on her.

"Well, we gotta rescue him!"

\---

_Max was back in his old room. At home. He had to have done something really bad if David had sent him back here. Oh, shit. His parents were gonna…_

_"Max!"_

_No_

_"Max!"_

_Nonononononononononono_

_"Max!"_

_Nonopleaseimsorrypleaseidontpleaseimsorrynopleasepleasedad_

_"Max."_

_"Max…"_

_"Max…"_

Max forced his eyes open, instantly regretting it.

"Fuck off, David." He knew there was no bite there. The anger and fear that had driven his cursing and bad behaviour all summer was gone. He was just tired.

"Oh, Max." On second thoughts, fuck that. And fuck David for that condescending ass voice.

"Fuck you, asshole!" Max sat up and immediately tumbled off of the sofa he was on. David watched nervously as his most troublesome camper let out a string of curse words into the ground.

"Max, you're sick, and you need to stay in bed."

"I'm fucking fine, David! God why do you have to stick your stupid fucking nose in everyone's shitty lives?"

Max had managed to heave himself into an almost upright position when his arms gave out and he crashed back down to the floor.

David sighed and reached down to scoop him up. Max thrashed against his grip.

"Max, please." This all sounded so _wrong._ David shouldn't sound so tired. He shouldn't have known.

"No one was supposed to know!" Max clapped his hands over his mouth. He hadn't meant to say that out loud.

David's heart broke. This was all too visible on his face and Max wriggled out of his arms and onto the sofa. He needed a moment to collect himself.

"Max," said David, "please just get some rest. You need it."

Max almost argued, but he was suddenly struck by a wave of dizziness as his adrenaline boost faded to nothingness. He sank down onto the bed, curling into a ball and turning his back to the camp counsellor sitting next to him. He heard David sigh as he drifted off. It kinda made him wanna yell more, but he could maybe rest his eyes before he…

\---

Max awoke to incessant screaming (Neil), war cries (Nikki), groaning (Gwen), chatter (David), and the occasional yell of "Roll for hit points!" (Nerris). After some unfocused but aptly furious squinting, Max managed to surmise that Harrison, Nerris, Nikki and Neil had broken into the Cabin and attacked Gwen and David. This was not an uncommon occurrence, but he was tired and his life had just fallen apart, so Max was not, as they say, in the mood for bullshit.

"What the FUCK is going on?!"

"Max! You're awake!" Nikki's voice was shrill but somehow comforting.

(This is a common psychological effect that can be summed up in this thought process:

"Fuckfuckshit everything's going wrong oh look here's this familiar thing I like it it's mine now I'm keeping it")

"Right, everybody out, Max might not be feeling better yet and we need to check he's okay before he can go back out and play with you guys again," said David. There was minor uproar at this, a combination of "We don't play" and "Max is fine" that sent Max's head spinning. He groaned quietly. He felt like shit, but he really didn't want to spend anymore time around David.

"They're right David, I'm fine, get off my back and let me go outside. I can pretend to like it here, you guys can pretend your jobs aren't worthless and we can all pretend this never happened." Max hopped off the bed, ignoring how his head span and wobbled his way across the cabin.

"Max, wait!" Ugh, Fucking David.

Max turned in time to see Gwen and David exchange The Look™.

"Right! Everybody out!" Yelled Gwen. There were groans and protests. "Nerris, I will get you a new quest, Harrison, a new set of cards, Neil I will get you actual science equipment and Nikki… you… I'll help you burn something. Now everyone OUT!"

"NO!" Yelled Nikki. "WE'RE NOT LETTING YOU TAKE OUR FRIEND AWAY!"

"Nikki, Max isn't going anywhere," said David with a sigh, "but even so… I've called Child Protective Services."


	2. The One Where Social Workers Aren't That Bad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max is given an ultimatum, and a choice. Trigger Warnings for physical abuse of a child, flashbacks and hallucinations. Sort of? Idk like imagine daydreaming but nightmares. Or a nightmare but while you're awake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long. Stress and parents and Exams have been getting to me and I haven't had much time to write. But I am not abandoning this fic. I have a plan for it and everything. I hope you enjoy the next part. Please read with caution because you may be triggered by the chapter's content. The current triggers are: Child Abuse, physical and emotional, and "Daymares" which are like flashbacks.

"Y-you… you…"

David did not regret many things in his life. He had learned to view mistakes as learning experiences, something that was helped by the fact he taught the same thing to young children year-round.

But now, seeing the mixed look of shock, anger and betrayal on Max's face, he regretted everything that had led him to this point. Of course, he did not really regret it but…

"YOU DID WHAT?!" David's train of thought was distracted by the sudden return of Max's anger. David could see Gwen out of the corner of his eye, groaning softly.

_"Don't fuck this up, David. Max is unstable enough as it is. We have to do something about this, but… just… take him into account before you act, idiot."_

"FUCK YOU, YOU ASSHOLE!"

"Max, please…"

"NO! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU DICK!" Max stormed out of the cabin, practically shaking with anger.

"Max!" David started out after him, but Gwen's fast reactions had him jerking back almost comically as her hand gripped his shoulder. "Gwen!" He pleaded. The other counsellor shook her head.

"No, David. Let him blow off some steam first. He's had a tough ride, just give him a moment." David's shoulders slumped.

"Come on kids," said Gwen, "David needs a moment, too."

\---

"Fuck off, Nikki, Neil."

They sat down next to him anyway. They had known from the minute they'd met Max that they'd be friends. Nikki could tell she could help him cause chaos, which was all she'd really wanted to do, Neil knew he could benefit from some shared cynicism, but they'd both quickly realised what his problem was.

"My Dad hit me once." Max looked up in surprise, eyes widened at Nikki. "He had just gone out with his friends and he came back and started yelling. Stuff about why couldn't I be a proper… anyway, I tried to yell back but he smacked me across the face really hard. I haven't seen him since. There were lots of fights between him and my mom and then… he was gone."

Max was very quiet for a while and then he looked up from the stream they were sat by. "You're lucky. Your mom must love you a lot."

"I wish my mom could do that with you. I wish you could be my brother, then… then you wouldn't have to go back." Max's eyes widened.

"You'd have to share your mom, though." Nikki took a moment to understand.

"That's no big deal, silly! We'd be siblings! We could make chaos together all the time! Besides, even if my mom's not the worst, she's pretty far from the best…" Nikki shrugged and poked a stick in the water.

"I'd have to move near you to make sure you didn't blow up a school or something," Neil groaned and flattened himself to the ground dramatically. "I regret our friendship."

They laughed.

Max was once again quiet. Then, "hey, guys?"

"Yeah?"

"That first day you came… when we hijacked the bus… that's the most fun I've ever had. I… I'm glad we're friends." He pulled his hood over his curls so only one small clump poked out. Nikki and Neil grinned and they all flopped over onto the grass

They lay like that until Gwen found them, in comfortable silence, throwing stones into the water and poking each other with sticks.

\---

"Max, I want to apologise."

"Yeah well that won't do shit, will it, idiot." He could the flower at his cheery tone.

David passed a hand over his face. For the first time since the beginning of summer he was very truly tired. He sighed. It was time to drop the act.

"Okay, Max, here's the deal," the boy looked up in something akin to shock, obviously surprised at David's change in tone. "There was never going to be a situation in which I didn't call the Child Protective Services," and the scowl was back, "but," David continued cautiously, "I went about it the wrong way. I should have kept you informed of my actions as they happened. So, I am sorry, Max. In truth, I called them earlier in the summer, to report the suspicions I already had about your… home situation." David paused. "Let me know if I'm confusing you."

"Don't patronise me, asshole, I'm not an idiot."

"Well, they did not begin an investigation immediately, but, after the report I gave yesterday there is likely an investigation being carried out right now."

Neither David nor Gwen missed the draining of colour from Max's face.

"Kid," interrupted Gwen, "as much as David is trying to do the right thing, he's being longwinded, and we do actually have information for you."

"Right, right," said David, cringing under Gwen's glare, "there is a Social Worker coming to talk to you tomorrow, they're probably going to ask you some questions about your home life." Max raised an eyebrow. "They're definitely going to ask about your home life," David corrected himself. "We need you to be as honest as possible."

Max snorted. "Yeah, cuz that's likely to happen. I'm not saying shit, assholes. It's fine."

"Alright listen up," said Gwen breaking the momentary silence. "We both saw your arm yesterday and we all know that that does not constitute 'fine'. Clearly you've been living in some kind of abusive hellhole, Max, so if you want out, you tell the truth. You have a choice, I hope you make the right fucking decision." She opened her comic book again and sank back into the couch.

Max stared, shocked, at the more practical counsellor. Then he found his way back to his smart mouth.

"Oh, so you're saying it's gonna be so much better living in some broken, shitty system that doesn't give a fuck about kids anyway than with _Them_. You don't know jack shit about my life, Gwen, so stop sticking your nose in!"

"Language, Max."

"Fuck you." Max slammed the door on his way out.

"He'll tell the social worker," said Gwen.

"Wha-?"

"I gave the little shit an ultimatum. He knows that the system's gonna be better. He just doesn't wanna admit that he's wrong."

"Don't call him that, Gwen. He's not as bad as you think he is."

Gwen sighed and put down her comic book. "I know." And she did. She knew everything, and she could read this situation like her comic book.

"C'mere ya li'l shit."

David leaned into the hug happily.

"Max will be okay, David."

"I hope so."

\---

Max stomped into his tent and tore his hoodie off. Neil glanced over from his calculators sympathetically.

"Therapy or Social?"

"Fucking social."

"Yikes. Want me to get Nikki?"

"No. Yes. Maybe. I don't know." Neil stood and disappeared into the outside world. Max fell into his own thoughts.

Gwen was right. He had a choice to make. But how well would this go down. On the one hand, he could shut his mouth and run away to nowhere. He could hide at Neil's or Nikki's. Maybe even try to make it into Canada. Or Mexico. He wasn't even sure which was closer at this point.

Or he could talk. He pictured it. A cold looking woman in a pantsuit staring him down as he recounted the actions of _Them_. Staring unflinchingly as he pulled his sleeves up and showed her the scars _They_ 'd left there. Telling her about _Them_. _Them_ finding out. _Him_ glaring in a small room. The woman in the pantsuit disappearing. The smell of old beer on _His_ breath. _Her_ laughter, manic and pained. Vodka bottles and dashes of white powder. The party lifestyle. Carrying drinks to important people. Some of them congratulated him on a job well done. Some were angry. As angry as _Him_ and _Her_. Angry. Angry. Shouting. _Him_ shouting. _Her_ laughing. _Him_ raising a fist, _Her_ putting out another cigarette on-

"Max!"

Max's eyes flew open. He lashed a foot out and caught Nikki's arm. She pushed him away.

"We came back and you were having a Daymare again."

"Oh. Sorry." Not real. It wasn't real. It had felt real. But it wasn't.

Max flopped back and stared at the tent ceiling. He fought off the tears for a few seconds until Neil and Nikki lay down either side of him and wrapped arms around him.

"I have to tell the social worker the truth."

"We know."

"Maybe it'll get better?"

"Maybe."

\---

Max had no idea what he'd been expecting. Actually, that was a lie. Max knew exactly what he'd been expecting: a stern frowny woman, who bore a striking resemblance to his father, in a pantsuit. What he had not been expecting was what he got: a tall blonde guy with messy hair and a tan in a t-shirt and jeans. He was wearing converse. And they were muddy.

"Hiya, you must be Max, right?"

"No shit." Cali social frat boy's eyebrows quirked.

"Snarky, huh? Okay. So, Max, how'd you wanna do this?" Max's face scrunched.

"What?"

"Well, we could take a stroll, sit in the counsellors' cabin, even sit in your tent. Where we talk, even how we talk, is completely up to you, Max."

Max gave him a long stare. He didn't flinch, but blinked calmly. Max shrugged and turned away. He walked off towards the woods. The guy would follow.

Max was right, he did. The converse-wearing asshole fell into step beside him, without saying a word. Max's scowl deepened. He didn't know where he was going. Just somewhere in the woods. Somewhere away from everything.

\---

"Okay, so, Max." David looked worried. It seemed strange on his face, so accustomed to a frustratingly genuine smile. TBSD (Tall Blonde Social Dude), who's name had turned out to be Jamie, looked relaxed, which unnerved Max. Gwen looked slightly murderous, which was the only normal thing in the cabin.

"Right, options. Going back to your parents is not an option." Max had expected this and did not allow his face to show the surge of hope in his chest. "There are three main options." Max nodded seriously. He was starting to appreciate TBSD, he was treating him like an adult. "The first option is to put you into the closest foster home to your old home. This is usually the only option and it would mean nothing would change in terms of your school situation." Max nodded again. "The other option, which is possible due to your current location, is to stay in the foster home closest to here. The majority of the kids here come from the area around there so this would be the same as option one for any of them."

"But it's not for me because my parents shipped me halfway across the country to get rid of me." David did the Heartbroken Puppy face.

"Right," continued TBSD. "And this, based on what I've read of your file, is the option I'm expecting you to choose. You'd end up in most likely the same school as most of your friends here. You would be in a group home, but you'd have a fair amount of freedom provided you followed the rules there."

 _Rules_ , thought Max, _submission in exchange for freedoms. I can roll with that._

"And then there's option three." TBSD shot David a Look. Max didn't recognise it.

"Option three," said David. "Is to stay with me."


	3. Camp Dad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max makes a decision. And I finally finish what was originally gonna be the prologue but ended up being literally 3 chapters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, I'm still planning this fic and everything and the final scene was a Nighmare to write.

Max stood stunned for a second. _David? Stay with David? How did that even_ -

"I'm a foster carer anyway," he said. "I've had quite a few kids come live with me, not usually for very long, a few months, maybe a school year. I like to think they left happier than they came in. I'm still in contact with a few. There's one ca-"

"David you're rambling." Gwen was known for cutting people off brutally. Max was momentarily thankful. "Go think about it kid. Talk to your friends. They'll know what the right thing to do is."

"Uh, Gwen, is that wise?" Asked Jamie. Max had almost forgotten he was there.

"Yes," said Gwen with a tone of finality. "Go, kid. Decide by the end of today." Max turned and left without saying a word, still stunned by the options before him.

"Would you say that went well?" Asked Jamie once he'd left.

"Yeah. He'll either choose David or the group home near here." David looked up.

"You really think so, Gwen?" His eyes widened and began to brim with tears.

"Don't get sappy on me. You know he idolises you. He already sees you as a father-figure. Sort of. Not that he'd ever admit it." David smiled, remembering the second long hug from Parents' Day.

"Well," said Jamie, "I suppose I should get going. If you could e-mail me Max's decision so I can make the necessary arrangements?" Both counsellors nodded. "Good luck," added the social worker. "I think you'd be a great fit for Max." David's beam doubled in size. Jamie smiled back and left the cabin.

"Ugghhh… I'm gonna have to put up with you like this all day, aren't I?"

"Yep!"

\---

"Ohmyfuckinggodnikki." Max flopped onto his friend, making her stagger backwards as she caught him.

"The hell?" Asked Neil. Max stared at them, wide-eyed, for a moment.

"Davidisafosterparentandicangolivewithhimorican-"

"Max! Slow down!" Max took a deep breath.

"Okay, okay, so basically…"

\---

"Well, what do we do?" Nikki automatically turned to Neil at the end of Max's stumbling explanation.

"We?"

"Well, duh. We're your _friends_."

"Okay, Max, absolutely 100% honestly, do you hate David?" Max stared at Neil. "Simple question, man."

"I… no, I guess not. At least he doesn't hit me or anything." Neil and Nikki shared a not-so-subtle look. They both knew Max already saw David as a dad. He was just stubborn.

"Okay so do you wanna stay in the same area you were before or round here with us?" Asked Nikki, catching on.

"Here with you. Back home it sucks, duh."

"Okay so, would you rather live with a total stranger or someone you know?" Max finally cottoned on.

"Oh." Nikki and Neil shared a look. Max stared at his trainers.

"Max, whatever you choose, we're gonna be there for you."

"I know."

"Sure ya do. It'd be waaayy too hard to get rid of me!"

Ered and Spacekid heard the laughter from the other side of the campsite.

\---

David had prepared a good day of activities, focusing on adventure camp and art camp at the same time. He was fairly sure Max would also like this activity, but they'd have to see.

"Okay, campers! Today we're going to be heading into the woods…" a collective groan from everyone but Nikki, "to make a unique art piece…" groans from all but Dolph this time, "out of whatever we can find!" More groans. David grinned back. _Positive reinforcement!_

He'd saved the best until last, of course. "Okay campers, time to go pick up our expedition backpacks!" There was a general curious murmur accompanied by a suspicious glower from Max.

The campers followed David around to the quartermaster's store, unsure of what to expect. They were met with a row of backpacks, varied and clearly personalised to each camper. "Skater grrl", rockets, a fishing rod, Hamilton, D&D, cards, paint splatters, equations, camouflage and just plain black.

"WOAHHH!!"

"This is AWESOME!"

"ADVENTURE!!!!!"

"Where the fuck did you get the money for this shit?"

"Language," David said absentmindedly. "Do you like it?"

"…Yeah. It's cool." David smiled widely.

"As for the money… me and Gwen are the only two employees in Mr. Campbell's business. I'm Gwen's senior because I've worked here longer, so I… kind of inherited the company? Including billions of dollars?"

"The fuck? Is that legal?"

" _Language_. And apparently so. I'm glad you like your backpack, Max."

"Black and shrouded in darkness like my soul."

Gwen laughed. "Right, then. Let's get going ya lil bastards."

\---

There was a quiet knock at the counsellors' cabin door. David's head lifted from the desk.

"Door's always open!" He called cheerily. Said door creaked open slowly to reveal a mess of dark curls.

"Hi, Max." David softened his voice. The young boy's eyes were rimmed red and his cheeks showed a telltale flush from being scrubbed dry.

"I-I've made up my mind." Max was fidgeting. Nervous.

"That's great." David was careful to keep his voice gentle, not allowing a hint of his anticipation to show. Max didn't speak for a long time. David left him to his own devices, knowing that he would need some time.

"Iwannastaywithyou." Max's words tumbled out in a stuttered mess. He dug his fingernails into his arm. Idiot.

David blinked. Then grinned wider than Lake Lilac.

"That's great!" Max gave a small smile himself. David found himself beginning to tear up.

"Oh my fucking god," Max blurted before he could stop himself. He clapped a hand over his mouth. "Nonono I didn't mean that. Do your thing, man, I… I'll shut up." And he had dashed out of the door before David could say another word.

"MAX! GET BACK TO YOUR TENT!"

Gwen stomped into the cabin and froze at the sight of David's face.

"Oh… mygod. What the fuck happened now?"

"He wants to live with me!"

Gwen responded with exasperated groaning.

"He came in and I got a bit emotional and then he left but that's fine because we both know what he's like with feelings and I'm gonna be a Dad!"

"If you say that to him he'll probably change his mind."

"Right right I know he probably doesn't want to think of me as a parent just yet but _Gwen_!"

"Okay, it's time to stop talking if I can hear the exclamation points in your speech. Get some sleep, David."

"Night night, Gwen!"

"'Night."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So firstly the reason Max forgot Jamie was there is because so did I and I wrote that without him at first.
> 
> Secondly, next chapter will be some proper Dadvid bonding I promise.
> 
> Thirdly, ohmyfuckinggodnikki is now my phone's autocorrect default when I type 'oh'.


	4. Sunsets are Beautiful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max, David and Gwen pack up the camp. Max makes a mistake.

"Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfu…"

"It's gonna be awesome! David will be cool and hey maybe he has a secret wife who's a SPY!" Neil gave a Nikki a Look.

"Do you realise how improbable that is?"

"Bonquisha was a cover!"

"…ckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

"Okay, chill. It's gonna be fine."

Max looked up from his backpack for the first time in half an hour.

"This is not going to be fine!"

"Okay you know what, dude? You can keep freakin' out in here or you can come out for David's dumbass campfire and considering you gotta live with him for the next however long, you probably wanna take that option." There was a sense of finality in Neil's tone that soothed Max's nerves.

"Okay."

\---

"Well, campers, it's been a wonderful… a wonderful… oh I can't do it!" David began to cry. "I'm too sad to see you all go!" 

"You're not seeing all of us go…" Max hunched his shoulders over and stared at his backpack. Everyone had gotten to keep them 'as a memento'.

"What David means is, uh, it's been a great summer and we look forward to seeing you little shits next year, if you're crazy enough to come back."

There was silence for a few moments.

"O-okay," David blubbered through his tears, "time for some camp songs!" He pulled out his guitar. For once, no one complained and he began strumming some chords.

Max stayed quiet while everyone else sang. He could feel his heart beating in his chest. This was it. This was the last time he would see the camp. He doubted David would make it the full year until he could come back, so this was probably the end.

Definitely. Don't be an idiot. This is definitely the last time you see them. Max reached up into his curls and tugged. He didn't even flinch as a couple hairs came out.

Max did not see when Gwen quietly gestured to David. He began to pass his guitar around, each camper getting a turn to learn some chords. 

David shifted past Spacekid and slowly reached for Max's hand. Max's head shot up the moment David touched him. He pulled his hand away hurriedly and clenched both into tight fists. The counsellor carefully took Max's fists and opened them.

"Take a deep breath and try to relax," he said quietly.

Max did as told. David was handed his guitar back and went back to playing campfire songs.

Eventually, parents began arriving. Max grew quieter and quieter as each camper left, until his goodbyes were small hums accompanied by waves. David glanced at him every couple of seconds, checking he was still there. A part of him was worried Max would disappear given half a chance.

David watched the campers go, proud, worried, and melancholy. He shook the feeling off and turned to Gwen and Max.

"Right! Max, this is when me and Gwen pack everything up. You are welcome to help us out, but it's fine if you don't want to."

"Sure, I'll help. Whatever." Gwen mouthed something indistinguishable that might have been "good luck", but David ignored her.

"Great! So, Gwen do you wanna carry on as normal and Max you can help me take the tents down?" Gwen wandered off towards the Mess Hall and Max shrugged. He trod off to the tents and started wrestling with the ropes.

"You need some help with that, buddy?"

"No," Max grumbled. David raised his eyebrows. Max huffed. "Yes." David smiled gently and showed him how to undo the knots. They were tough, designed to make sure grabby kids couldn't make their tents collapse on their heads. Max mastered them quickly and went on alone, moving to the next tent the moment he'd finished the last, only occasionally pausing to watch the poles come crashing down. David had guessed his new son (they'd have to discuss that) would enjoy that part.

They finished quickly, David carrying the last of the poles into the storage hut not even a half hour later. Max shoved his hands into his pockets. David could see the ten-year-old's hands twisting back and forth in the pockets as Max glowered. Maybe a fidget toy would be a good idea? He'd have to look into it.

"Okay, then! Let's head on back to the mess hall and check up on Gwen!" Max shrugged. David frowned. He was strangely quiet today. Usually, there would be at least three biting comments gearing up to fall from Max's lips.

The two ambled over to the mess hall, where Gwen was still wrestling with tables.

"God fucking damnit, stupid shitty ass oak wood tables why did I take this job?" Max smirked at her grumbling, making sure neither of the adults saw.

"Need a hand, Gwen?" The counsellor looked up with murder in her eyes. "Okay, then!" David grabbed a table and moved it over to the corner of the room, stacking it on top of the others flawlessly. Gwen glowered and continued her desperate pulling. Max quietly walked over and clicked the wheel stopper off. Gwen stared at him.

"You little shit."

"Language." Max shot a smirk her way.

Gwen huffed and pulled the table over to the big pile, stacking it with the rest.

"Well that's all of them. It's finally over." David smiled sadly.

"I know, I'm gonna miss this place for the next year."

Gwen snorted, shaking her head. "You're unbelievable."

The two stared out of the window for a moment, and Max was affronted by the very uncomfortable feeling that he was intruding. He didn't like it, so carefully slipped away out of the doors and back to the campfire. He stared at the fading embers. What was he doing? How had he ever thought that David was the right choice. He already had a stupid happy life. He didn't need some shitty ass kid coming and ruining his whole thing.

Ugh.

Stupid David.

Stupid David and stupid Gwen.

Ugh.

Max stood up and wandered. He didn't exactly know where he was going, or how he was going to find his way back, but those aren't really the sorts of things you think about when you're in a bad mood. He didn't notice the light fading away at first. Nor did he feel the chill settling in. Not until he had wandered his way to an unfamiliar part of the woods.

\---

David smiled. All was good with the world.

"Sunsets really are beautiful, aren't they, Max?"

Silence.

"Max?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes, I'm sorry that this took so long to update, and that this is so short. Luckily, I now have a laptop to write on rather than my phone and a bit of free time on my hands. The next chapter will definitely be longer. I can promise tears and lots of Dadvid. I am going to try to update this regularly on Wednesdays, excepting this Wednesday because I have family drama to sort out.
> 
> Otherwise, thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. If you'd like to see more of my work, you can check out my camp camp blog on tumblr @dadvid-is-pure-and-good. If you'd like to read my ramblings about mental health and any of my original works, you can check out my primary on tumblr @wellweatheredwolf. I hope you have a nice morning/afternoon/evening/day/night wherever you happen to be and I also hope that you end up smiling soon!


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